Chapter 34

Yumina was playing a game at the PC room. Cha Haneul and Doyugeon were also there beside her.

On the game screen, it appeared that three players had voted for surrender. If Yumina herself voted for surrender, the game would end.

She had done everything right – as an ADC in the bot lane, she had secured kills, maintained a good CS, captured the dragon, and roamed several times. And yet, they had lost. Why had they lost?

Haneul sitting beside her muttered.

“The jungler was no good. If you’re going to gank, you should do it properly, not show up and get killed. All you did was unnecessarily strengthen the enemy.”

The reason for the loss was fairly obvious. The opposing mid-laner had developed too well, and every team fight, the enemy mid only targeted her, so there was no way to counter them.

Doyugeon, who was in the top lane, commented.

“Still, the top lane ganking was well done.”

“Guess the jungler was a top-lane type. The mid-lane ganking was truly terrible.”

“Is that so?”

Since the game’s defeat was clear, Cha Haneul blamed the jungler. Haneul’s gaming style was centered around political manipulation, and her skill level was around the top 50%.

Cha Haneul shook her head in irritation.

“That’s right. Didn’t you see how the jungling path was all messed up? It wasn’t optimized at all and was in complete chaos.”

“That might be true…”

Doyugeon hesitantly agreed with a somewhat uncertain look on his face. Seeing this, Cha Haneul’s temper flared, grabbing his shoulders and shaking him.

“It’s your fault! Because the mid-lane went down, the jungler had to suffer, right?”

Cha Haneul nonchalantly replied.

“How is it my fault? The jungler’s the one who’s not competent. Even if I died a few times at first, if the jungler had done their job, we wouldn’t be in this situation. If the jungler hadn’t ganked and died, the mid-lane wouldn’t have gotten to this state. Honestly, after I died early on, I played incredibly cautiously. The ADC is developing well. Did I push too hard? The jungler pressured me and caused me to follow and die unnecessarily. That’s how it was.”

Her expression was so confident, it almost felt believable.

Cha Haneul nudged Doyugeon as if daring him to disagree. Doyugeon, who had been focused on top lane and wasn’t fully aware of the mid-lane situation, seemed uncertain but finally nodded under the continued nudging.

“See? I’m right.”

Since Cha Haneul’s style is political manipulation, one shouldn’t trust her words outright. Her arguments sound convincing, but anyone familiar with her knows better. Though she fooled him a few times in the beginning, not anymore.

“Our young lady attempted a dive and died, and the jungler came to aid and also ended up dying. I saw that just now.”

It was Cha Haneul who pushed hard, and the jungler, trying to support, met their demise. Cha Haneul doesn’t like playing it safe during lane phase.

Cha Haneul’s face turned as if asking, “Did you really see that?” She paused for a moment, then approached, her face so close that her breath could be felt.

Startled by the sudden closeness, Yumina couldn’t help but tremble slightly. Despite her cute and pretty looks, this sudden act left her quite flustered.

“Why, why?”

“Why aren’t you hitting ‘surrender’? We’ve got to play the next game.”

Cha Haneul turned her head and moved the cursor to hit ‘surrender.’ The Nexus exploded, and the word “Defeat” flashed on the screen. She quickly completed the surrender to bring up the result screen.

Caught in the sudden change of situation, Yumina was momentarily dumbfounded, staring at the monitor. It was clear that Cha Haneul had attempted to manipulate the situation but then flipped the script when it didn’t work.

Blocking Cha Haneul as she attempted to queue again,

“Wait a bit.”

“Huh? Why?”

“I’ll take mid. The ADC role clearly isn’t carrying today, right?”

With a subtle glare, Yumina pressured her. After some contemplation, clearly hit by guilt, Cha Haneul replied curtly.

“No way.”

I knew she’d say that.

Yumina parted ways with the two and walked along the main road. They could’ve eaten dinner and parted earlier, but she had unexpectedly left home without any prior plans to pass the time, so she tagged along on their date. However, it felt wrong to join them for dinner as well since they were a couple. Cha Haneul probably wouldn’t mind, but still.

The road was busy as the sun was still up. Once it set, this bustling activity would likely subside due to poor security in the area.

The Fantasy Phenomenon did not initiate any drastic changes. All the various rumors that emerged with the appearance of the System—such as alien invasions, the world’s impending doom, the revelation of gods, or a scientific revolution following the discovery of an unknown domain overturning everything with unimaginable technology—none of those came to pass.

Somewhere, subtle yet massive changes might be occurring. However, all the negative forecasts and anxieties were proven wrong as her daily life has remained largely unchanged despite the Fantasy Phenomenon being a year ago. Perhaps a year is simply too short a span to truly feel any difference.

There’s still one noticeable change: the security issue. People disappear from the streets as night approaches. The main areas remain bustling, but in other streets, the number of people is noticeably reduced. It’s not that no one is walking at all—it’s just that, when you glance around, there’s often no one there, making it eerie and quiet. Recently, some stores have started closing once night falls, adding to the impression.

In reality, security hasn’t completely collapsed. Based on personal experience of wandering out at night, committing crimes still isn’t common. For the moment, at least. The real issue is that, if a crime does occur, there’s no one nearby to help.

I’m not sure why this situation developed. Was it because of media reporting linking the System with explorers having increased violent tendencies or those sensational tales of serial killings involving explorers? Maybe it was when criminals interrupted live broadcasts to recruit manpower. I’m not sure.

I bought an onigiri at the convenience store and heated it in the microwave. Regardless of the reason behind worsening security, I hope it doesn’t get worse. Although I don’t plan to stay home just because the street at night has become dangerous.

Doyugeon was searching for a restaurant on his phone when he asked,

“What should we eat?”

Why ask me when you’re the one searching?

Though the idea of having dinner had crossed my mind, I haven’t decided what to eat yet. It’s been only a few minutes, but I’m hungry already.

What are some good nearby places to eat? Hmm, oh right, I remember one place. It’s not close, but if we walk a bit, there’s a place I once went to with my parents.

“How about sushi? There’s a Japanese restaurant I know nearby.”

Doyugeon glanced at me and continued searching. What’s his deal, he’s not saying anything. Does he dislike the idea? Is he good with it? Either way, he should speak up. I’m hungry, for goodness’ sake. What’s with this sudden silence?

The situation lingered—him searching, me waiting—until his phone rang. He answered.

“Yes. I’m doing fine. I was just hanging out a while ago.”

I couldn’t make out the entire conversation, but it sounded like a casual check-in. The use of honorifics suggests an elder, but who?

Mid-conversation, Doyugeon glanced at me again. Huh?

“If someone buys our meal, I wouldn’t mind, but I’m not sure if Cha Haneul would like it, so I’ll check.”

He ended the call.

“Someone’s offering to pay for dinner. How does that sound?”

“Who?”

“Remember the Fire Mage from our last Exploration Guild offline event?”

Ah, that Fire Mage. Now that I think about it, they did meet during the Exploration Guild’s first offline meet. They must have been in contact since exchanging numbers back then.

Even if they’re offering to pay, I don’t intend to meet them, but Doyugeon seems interested, so why not get a free meal.

“Sure, let’s go.”

Upon agreeing, Doyugeon’s expression darkened slightly. What’s with that? He suggested it but is now acting reluctant. It’s hard to please some people.

Before long, the Fire Mage arrived, and we headed to a chicken place. Chicken, great. It’s tasty, affordable, and follows a standard recipe, so every restaurant makes it well without fail.

As we sat down, the Fire Mage kindly placed forks and knives at my seat. A knife? I glanced at the Fire Mage but couldn’t figure out their intention.

“I’m preparing to start an explorer-related business.”

Doyugeon asked,

“Like system distribution?”

“Something different. While I’m not entirely excluding it, there are no plans to focus on system distribution as a business since major corporations and the Exploration Guild are already major players, making the market too competitive.”

“Then what else is there? Haven’t heard of other options. Oh, magic research?”

“It’s not magic research. The theory isn’t developed enough to commercialize it yet. Hmm, how should I explain this?”

Then the chicken arrived, and I took a bite of a drumstick. Chicken is always good. Boneless is convenient, but the bones add a nice flavor.

I felt someone looking at me, and turned to see the Fire Mage’s gaze.

“Miss, you’re not using the knife?”

What’s her problem? Making people uncomfortable is her specialty, it seems. I shot her a look and took another bite of chicken.

The Fire Mage hesitated and cleared their throat.

“Anyway, I’m preparing for an explorer-based business. It’s not a specific plan with a set goal. Though there are areas of interest, they’re not set in stone yet. In short, everything’s in preparation. It’s like being ready to sprint but not starting the race, as we’re still deciding which direction to go.”

“Why’s that?”

“The explorer business field is new, so it’s full of variables, or you could say opportunities. With every system update, possibilities expand or shrink, and laws are changing in Congress, shifting what’s legal and illegal. While being at the forefront means more opportunities, I don’t want to risk jumping into something wrong, so I’m taking my time.”

“If we get monsters in the city limits, you’ll go into monster hunting?”

“Haha, exactly. If a dungeon shows up today, we’ll go for dungeon clearing.”

They’re pretty driven. I swallowed the chicken I was munching on and took a sip of cola. The carbonation irritated my throat. Ugh, I don’t really like it.

I’m not sure the combo of cola and chicken is all that great. It’s greasy, so a carbonated drink works, but is cola really the best match? Not sure if it’s a good pairing, but nothing better comes to mind.

The conversation tapered off, and we continued eating for a while. Then the Fire Mage mentioned something offhand,

“I remember that your level-up speed was fast. Are you around level 25?”

“Yes, that’s right. I hit the mark recently.”

“Wow, that’s practically max-level.”

“Hahaha.”

Why the laughter?

“Level 25 makes us the same level, so a duel would be interesting.”

“For what?”

“A duel.”

“What? I’d absolutely win.”

A rather embarrassing statement echoed through. I paused eating to look over at Doyugeon, who was grinning confidently. Confidence can be good, but I didn’t need to hear something embarrassing while standing next to him.

They began a staring contest, then decided to duel right away, even before finishing the meal. Do they even feel hunger?

“Young lady, you’re not joining?”

I shook my head. No, I don’t compete with people I’ve barely met.

Since things turned out this way, watching them duel while enjoying chicken might be amusing after all.

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